Stroke:
clot-busters to the rescue?13 APRIL
2000 As former
Japanese Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi fights for his life after a massive
stroke, The Why Files wonders how to treat a loss of blood to the brain.

Strokes are no
laughing matter: In the United States, they are the number-three cause
of death; in 1997, they killed 160,000 people.

Between 600,000
and 750,000 Americans have a stroke each year. Another 500,000 mini-strokes,
called transient ischemic attacks, briefly produce stroke symptoms. A
recent study
indicates that the rate of strokes has begun rising after a period of
decline.

Before
and after clotbuster: The top image is an MRI of a brain with a
clogged middle cerebral artery. The bottom image shows improved
blood circulation after quick administration of a clot-busting drug.

Strokes kill brain
cells. Depending on where in the brain they occur, they can destroy just about any
brain function. For stroke survivors, the odds of permanent disability
range from 15 to 30 percent. With an estimated 4.4 million survivors in
the United States alone, you can understand why strokes are called the
biggest cause of serious, long-term disability.

About 20 percent
of strokes occur when a brain artery breaks, causing massive bleeding,
and often death. We'll focus on the remaining 80 percent: strokes that
follow the clogging of an artery delivering blood to the brain.

Suddenly,
treatment is possibleOnce dismissed by
doctors as an untreatable ailment of old age, these "ischemic" strokes
are now seen as medical emergencies. As Wayne Clark, director
of the Oregon Stroke Center puts it, "Time is brain." Often, he says,
major damage occurs within half an hour of the blockage.

There are two reasons
for haste: Brain cells quickly die without oxygen and sugar delivered
by blood. And the only drug available for treating stroke in the United
States stops working three hours after the blockage starts.

Having
a stroke?To recognize a stroke
quickly, you've gotta know the symptoms.

Sudden:

numbness
or weakness, particularly on one side of the body.

confusion
or trouble speaking or understanding

trouble
seeing or walking.

trouble
with walking balance or coordination.

severe,
unexplainable headache.

If you feel the above symptoms,
call an ambulance or rush to an emergency room. Delay is risky! Acting
fast can save your brain cells.

Too
many strokesDepending on what
part of the brain loses its blood supply, a stroke can interfere with
speech, movement, vision or thought. More than 20 percent of people with
ischemic strokes -- those involving loss of blood to the brain -- die.
Some people recover after a stroke, but the brain isn't good at healing.

Every 53 seconds,
there's another stroke in the United States. Who is struck
by stroke?